How the Ben Skowronek trade impacts Rams’ depth chart at WR

The Los Angeles Rams unexpectedly parted ways with Ben Skowronek on Thursday, agreeing to trade him to the Houston Texans after it was originally reported that they planned to cut him. Skowronek was an integral part of the special teams unit last season and was a captain of that group, but the Rams didn’t see him contributing in 2024 so they chose to trade him now instead of waiting until later this summer.

While he wasn’t more than the fourth or fifth receiver on the depth chart, Skowronek’s departure does open the door for some of the other wideouts on the team. The biggest beneficiary of this move is rookie Jordan Whittington, who now has a good chance to be the fourth or fifth receiver behind Cooper Kupp, Puka Nacua and Demarcus Robinson.

Whittington is a willing blocker and has the ability to play any of the wide receiver spots on offense, which will help him get on the field more quickly. He can be a lead blocker on running plays where he comes across the formation and takes on the nickel defender, or he can line up outside and catch fades along the sideline.

Xavier Smith and Tyler Johnson could also benefit from Skowronek being out of the picture. The Rams re-signed Johnson this offseason and retained Smith after he was brought in as an undrafted rookie in 2023. Smith has some special teams potential as a return man, as well, so that will only help his chances of making the team.

If we look even further down the depth chart, a trio of undrafted free agents could push for a roster spot: Drake Stoops, J.J. Laap and Sam Wiglusz. It was hard to see any of them making the team with Skowronek occupying a spot on offense and special teams, but their chances just increased now that there’s one fewer player to compete with.

As of now, here’s how the depth chart could look.

There’s a long way to go until final roster cuts, but that’s a tentative projection of how things might stand at wide receiver as of now.

Story originally appeared on Rams Wire